CCA MFA WRITING
San Francisco
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Frequently Asked Questions
Should I Get an MFA?
Q: What are the best reasons to pursue an MFA in Writing?
A: The five strongest reasons are: (1) Finding your lifelong writing community and first readers, (2) Learning to give and receive constructive feedback regularly, (3) Working one-on-one with mentors who guide both your craft and career, (4) Building authentic professional networks through generosity rather than transactional relationships, and (5) Developing the accountability and discipline essential for a sustained writing life.
Q: What's a bad reason to get an MFA?
A: If you don't know what else to do with yourself or you're casually thinking "I might take this writing thing up." An MFA requires significant investment and is best suited for people who feel an urgent, persistent call to write—people who can't imagine not doing this work.
Program Structure & Experience
Q: Can I write in multiple genres or do I have to choose a track?
A: You don't have to choose a single track. Many students take workshops across genres—fiction one semester, poetry another. You can also take electives outside the writing department, including visual arts, film, or other creative disciplines.
Q: What makes mentored study different from regular workshops?
A: Mentored study provides four semesters of one-on-one attention with faculty mentors of your choice. You meet every other week to work on your individual writing and reading goals, discuss your creative process, and plan your path forward. It's highly personalized—some students focus intensively on a novel, others explore different forms and discover their voice.
Q: Is the program welcoming to experimental and hybrid forms?
A: Absolutely. Being at an arts college means we embrace cross-genre and hybrid work. Students have taken textile courses to understand characters who weave, animation classes to explore poetry and film connections, and worked on projects that blur the lines between memoir and fiction. We regularly offer courses like "Experiments in Life Writing" and "Queer the Grid" that challenge traditional genre boundaries.
Practical Considerations
Q: Can I work while in the program?
A: Yes. While it's a rigorous full-time program, many students work and have families. Most students can configure their schedules to be on campus just twice a week, giving them flexibility for other commitments.
Q: Is the program part-time?
A: Currently no, but we're considering it for the future. The program is designed as a full-time, two-year experience, though we accommodate working students through flexible scheduling.
Q: What if English is my second language?
A: We welcome and have many international students. Knowing multiple languages is actually a superpower—it makes you more flexible and fluid with language. Our faculty, including accomplished translator Denise Newman, help all students engage with global literary traditions.
Community & Support
Q: How do you address equity and anti-racist practices in workshops?
A: We've fundamentally transformed traditional workshop models. Students being workshopped always have opportunities to speak about their work. Faculty focus on being curious and compassionate readers rather than prescriptive critics. We integrate discussions about inclusive pedagogy into our courses and create environments where every student feels respected and heard.
Q: What's the difference between your program and fully funded programs?
A: While we offer a few full and several generous partial scholarships, other fully funded programs typically require significant teaching responsibilities—you're paying your way through labor as a teacher while trying to be a student. Here, you're a student first. Teaching opportunities exist if you want them, but the choice is yours. You get the luxury of time to develop your practice and engage deeply in community.
Q: How big are the workshops and what's the student-faculty ratio?
A: We're intentionally small with cohorts of 8-10 students per year. This means faculty really get to know each student, can tailor opportunities to individual goals, and no one gets lost in the system. You'll have meaningful relationships with faculty who follow your work throughout the entire program.
After the MFA
Q: What do graduates do after the program?
A: Our alumni are publishing across genres with major presses. Recent publications include works from Random House, Coffee House Press, Harper Collins, Nightboat, and others. Many form ongoing accountability groups with classmates, continue working with faculty mentors, and maintain the reading and writing habits developed during the program.
Q: Do you help with professional development?
A: Yes. We offer a course called "What to Do with Your MFA" that covers fellowship applications, residencies, artist statements, and career opportunities. Faculty share their 200+ collective years of experience in conferences, judging prizes, and professional publishing. We believe in anti-gatekeeping—sharing all the knowledge and tools we can.
Q: What excites faculty in application materials?
A: We look for surprise, risk-taking, and passion showing through the work. This could be an unexpected character, a beautiful sentence we've never encountered, or writing that demonstrates the author's deep knowledge of their fictional world. We want to feel the excitement and joy the writer experiences in creating their work. Genre doesn't matter—what matters is authentic engagement with craft and story.